B I SEE/With Besa Ismaili, woman seeking to transform female role into Kosovo politics

From Ellis Greeve

Political apathy in Kosovo is on the rise, while political parties are trying to achieve new electorates. TRT world spoke to a new candidate who wants to make changes.

As the election campaign is under way in Kosovo, one of the most important in the last two decades, I sat down with one of the candidates aiming to enter parliament for the first time.

Besa Ismaili, 44, is a mother of three and if she wins, she will also be one of the first women with headscarves to set foot in parliament in a country with 95 per cent Muslim majority for one of the main political parties, the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK).

When I met Ismaili at one of Pristina's cafes early in the morning, she had just left one of her children at a sports club.

Look, I've been working with women in the countryside, with survivors of sexual violence, with survivors of domestic violence, with survivors of violent extremism, and I've been one of the first to denounced Islamoobi in our country”, she says while ordering a tea.

“I have tried to break all stereotypes related to Muslim women and also debate prejudice against them”, it adds with an obvious determination.

The “may seem strange that we talk about such things in a predominantly Muslim country, but when former female candidates, wearing headscarves, have tried to run for parliament, they have faced abuse.

In the 2017 parliamentary elections, a female candidate was named wild “bisk” and “bastarde” by members of Kosovo's Demo-Christian Party to run as a covered woman.

A prominent Kosovo journalist, Enver Robelli, in a Facebook post allude that Ismaili's running to parliament is nothing but a party effort to retain power.

He has long expressed himself against <x0shim as a symbol of women's submission and humiliation!”, always on his Facebook.

He is not alone, another journalist known for her views on Muslims has spoken against the candidacy of Besa Ismaili.

However, people do not worry about such issues; instead, they are more concerned about unemployment and corruption.

There is still an influential minority in the media and politics that has brought the charge against those who show visible signs of respect for their faith. However, these voices are not limited to anti-Muslim extremes.

There are some voices, though much less powerful within the Muslim community itself, that believe Ishmael should not run for politics because “is something contrary to Islamic principles”.

For a long time, I've been alone on my journey as an activist, without the support of any political party or financial support different agendas, and all was like a futile” effort, Ismaili says, recalling her time in activism.

Besa has completed her studies on the Religious Theory in English Literature, and is currently in the process of completing the doctorate in political science, focusing on post conflict research on societies.

People talk about what's safe to talk about, but I haven't done the same to get to where I am today. I've been talking about things that nobody wants to talk about.”

Its PDK membership has not been its most secure move

The newest state declared independence in 2008 after a bloody war with Serbia in 1998-99, after the Belgrade government tried to clear the region of ethnic Albanians.

Since then, Kosovo has struggled to manage the expectations of its new population. High unemployment and corruption levels have blocked progress.

The blame for diseases that plague Kosovo has left the centre-right PDK, as well as other parties in Kosovo that have taken turns in Kosovo's governance over the past 20 years.

“I believe the party wants to change and become wider, and I will have to gain the confidence of my parliamentary group to achieve this”, Ismaili says. “Furthermore, I believe I can bring new ideas to the party. Kosovo politics needs new faces”.

She believes that the last two decades of activism have prepared her well for this kind of mission.

I think I've only achieved everything I can. It may not be too high for some, but it's too much for me personally. I can't do more by being only”.

When I enter parliament, I will see every legislation addressing women under-represented by villages, mothers staying at home, as well as working mothers, religious freedoms, ethnic minorities and also the Roma situation, and I will make sure that they are protected and represented”.

Ismaili has been working with marginalised groups in Kosovo for more than two decades and believes she has the right experience to be their voice.

In addition, it has been working with the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSBE) as interpreters in the democratisation department for more than six years.

She joined every government delegation and was part of training activities aimed at new parliamentary offices and has worked at increasing cohesion among people from different beliefs and ethnicities.

You speak fluent English, Arabic, Serbian and Turkish. Ismaili has also worked for the European Union's Mission for Rule of Law in Kosovo (EULEX) and is currently working as a professor at the Faculty of Islamic Studies.

As one of the first female professors at the Faculty of Islamic Studies and one of the first women wearing headscarves working in the OSCE and EULEX, Ismaili carries a clear understanding of reaching women, and especially for the Muslim woman in Kosovo.

Some of the challenges women face are material, but mainly is access to equal opportunities. ”

I'm not just talking about equal opportunities, for example, when it comes to a job application. If the state and society have invested only in men and the family itself has invested in men, and that is not right. I am determined to work hard to fight for the access of women in education, women from the country, survivors of sexual violence. There have been some historical injustices against women in Kosovo that I want to address. ”

My husband is not in social activism, he is focused on science completely, but he encourages me to do the work I'm doing, and he's also supportive. When I get tired sometimes I don't give up because I believe in”

By coincidence, Beth's husband, a neurosurgeon, calls him on the phone and briefly discusses who will choose to take which child from their various social activities.

But before she leaves, she wants to deliver a final message: “I will speak and stand for the truth about my people. ”

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